Find You Again
by Suki17
Summary: "I've got to live every girl's dream, I've seen amazing things and been amazing places, met incredible people-I've even learned how to say I love you in 6 different languages-and yet none of that could ever match up to what I have here." Nina's point of view while she's away from England & the dilemmas that occur when she finally returns. (House of Hollywood rewritten)
1. Chapter 1

**. *NOTE* THIS IS THE REWRITTEN VERSION MY ORIGINAL STORY OF HOUSE OF HOLLYWOOD. I know some of you didn't see the author's note I put in the story, and that's why I haven't deleted it yet, but this is almost a totally different plot. This is a story about Nina's point of view while she's absent from Anubis House, how she copes without Sibuna, and how she finds herself again as the Chosen One when she returns later in the series, assuming she does. **

**The previous chapters I've had in the first story of House of Hollywood will be either put in later after we see where the season goes, and at the very most, I'll change it to where its a sequel to this story instead of Visitors. **

**Anyways, for those of you who haven't read my Victorious/House of Anubis crossovers, Nina lives in California currently and she is distant cousins with Tori, and used to attend Hollywood Arts when she was younger for things like writing, theater, and other classic arts. This story will concentrate on Nina's journey finding herself again when dealing with not being able to see Fabian, Eddie, Amber, or any of the others for what she thinks will be a long time. **

**Some pictures of characters, artifacts, pieces of clothing, or even important notices will all be on my profile, as well as a new poll I really want your guys' opinions on. If you guys have any questions, PM me or leave it in a review and I'll get right back to you. Heck, even if you just want to rant about House of Anubis, I'm always ready to talk! :P I really hope you guys like this first chapter!**

**Here's the Pronologue/First Episode in Nina's point of view:**

_"Nina."_

_"Eddie."_

_"Come on."_

_"Don't ask."_

_"Please?"_

_"No."_

_Eddie sighed as he watched the girl in front of him fold her arms over her chest. He started to dribble the ball all around him, counting on it to bounce back into his reach without even having to look. "Here, I'll even let you pick the game. What do you wanna play?"_

_"How about Scrabble," She said, "Or one of your video games, like that racing game, NBA, or even Call of Duty if we have to. Oh, what about Dance Central? Yeah, that involves movement too, just like all of these-"_

_"Those are all inside games." Eddie reminded her._

_"Exactly."_

_He rolled his eyes. "We can play soccer, football, tennis, we can even play tag if you want-"_

_"I'm terrible at all those things Eddie." Nina frowned._

_"That's not the point. It doesn't matter if you suck, you play the game just to play." He then chest passed the ball to her, a little too hard in Nina's opinion. She caught it at the last minute, but stumbled back a few feet when it hit her own chest. "And since you mentioned the NBA, we're going to play basketball." She groaned. "Come on, just think of it as dancing. Only much harder."_

_Nina snorted. "This is _not _harder than dancing."_

_"Keep dreamin', Golden Girl."_

_"Dancers can stand on their toes for three hours, and all you guys do is throw a ball through a hoop. Big whoop."_

_"Wanna put your money where your mouth is, Martin?" Eddie gave her a smug look._

_Nina smirked back at him. "You know what? Hit me with your best shot, Sweet."_

_"Alright, no need to get feisty," He joked. "Ten bucks says you can't make one basket."_

_"And twenty says you can't beat me at Just Dance."_

_"I've taught you well," Eddie smirked. "You're on." He then outstretched his arm towards her. Nina took his hand in hers and gave it a good shake, a smile on her face. The two then got down into a kneeling position, Eddie dribbling the ball and getting ready to start. He spun around, leaning over the ball in order to keep Nina away from it._

_She hated how much longer his arms were. She tried countless times to swipe the ball from him, but he always managed to push her away. Eddie began shooting baskets, none of which she could rebound, and darting all around the court ahead of her. He laughed wildly as he watched Nina flail her arms at him, trying her hardest to at least touch the ball. A small part of him actually felt bad for her, almost wanting to give her a free-bee and let her take the ball from him, but then his normal self kicked in;_

_He remembered how absolutely hilarious it was to watch her fail this badly._

_After at least 20 shots, Nina finally had enough of his games and leaped forward, grasping his collar and hopping onto his back. Eddie quickly grabbed her legs in order to keep her from falling and burst out laughing. "That's against the rules!" He cried, still cracking up._

_Nina laughed with him. "I don't care!" She giggled. Eddie let her grab the ball from in front of him and carried her over to the basket. Nina threw the ball in the air, holding her breath as it rolled around the rim. Her and Eddie cheered when it finally went through the hoop._

_Nina hopped back off him and smiled proudly. "I believe you owe me ten dollars, Sir," She told him._

_Eddie snorted, reaching out to get the ball again. "I don't think so, Martin. You only made the basket because I helped you."_

_Nina rolled her eyes and immediately grabbed the ball from out of hid hands. She tossed it up at the backboard, having it bounce right out of the center of the square and straight into the ball back in her hands as it fell from the net. "There's your basket."_

_"Ok, for anyone else I would say that was almost cool," Eddie replied, "But for you, that's practically a miracle." Nina laughed and swatted his arm. Eddie smiled and bumped her with his hip, making her laugh even harder. "Now I believe you owe me a dance," He smirked at her._

_" I do, but we're going to have to rain check," Nina said. "I have to get back to the hospital to finally take Gran back to the house for home nursing, and you have a two hour drive back to your mom's with your name on it."_

_Eddie groaned, letting out a small chuckle after. "Don't remind me, I'm gonna murder somebody if I actually have to get up at 4 A.M. for my flight tomorrow." _

_Nina laughed with him. "Just make sure you say hi to everyone for me, because I can only imagine everyone's face when my boyfriend thinks you're me coming out of that van and tries to give a kiss-" Nina's face suddenly vanished and her gaze fell to the ground._

_Eddie noticed this, and acted quickly, as he had been all summer with his new lovely companion. He put a hand on her arm and rubbed her back softly. "Aw, it's ok Neens, I shouldn't have brought it up."_

_"No, it's not your fault. There was nothing you could've done about it anyway."_

_Eddie snorted. "I seriously doubt that. I think a little 'chat' with Granny could've been pretty convincing-"_

_"Eddie," Nina snapped at him abruptly, "It wouldn't have changed anything, so don't bring Gran into this. This was a decision that had to made...it's not her fault." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "It's time that I give you something."_

_Eddie watched in almost horror as she pulled her locket off from her lips twitched as she brushed her thumb over it, remembering all of the memories of hers that this treasure carried. She shook her head vigorously, as if trying to shake them out of her head. She then took Eddie's hand in hers, and placed the locket in his palm, closing his grasp for him._

_"Nina, I-I can't-"_

_"Anubis House is where it belongs, Eddie," Nina told him. "And you need to bring it back for me. I'm trusting you with this. You have to promise me you'll keep it safe wherever you are; you're my only hope, Osirian."_

_Eddie flinched as she called him by his formal name he had gained only a few months ago. And yet it seemed like an eternity since then. For some strange reason, he felt a pang of sorrow when it came to the thought of her not coming with him. It was his job to protect her, so why was she insisting on staying away from him? They'd be a whole ocean apart, how would he know if she needed him? What would happen if she was in danger, and there was nothing Eddie could do about it in England? What would he do then? "The Chosen One and the Osirian must be kept apart Eddie," She said, as if reading his thoughts, "I know it sounds ridiculous, but you just have to trust me on this for now."_

_Eddie shook his head and looked deep into her eyes, asking if she was truly honest with him right now. She nodded her head, but he could see in her eyes that they held much sorrow and he could've sworn he saw a gleam of regret. Eddie clenched his jaw and looked away, but muttered, "Ok,"_

_All the sudden, to his surprise Nina threw her arms around him and held on like her life depended on it. Eddie hesitated at first, but soon hugged her back just as tightly. "I'm promise I'll contact you if anything happens. And Eddie, just...please don't forget about me."_

_He smiled to himself. "Not a chance, Golden Girl."_

_After they said their final good byes, Eddie grabbed his bag and started off towards his car, thinking about how this year was gonna be. With no Nina, no one would be able to protect him from vicious attacks from Patricia or any other snotty Brits in the school. He'd probably still share a room with Fabian, and of course he'd be annoyed non-stop with Jerome and Alfie. Amber would be coming back from New York to wait for her reply from Fashion School, and Joy and Mara would be coming back too._

_Eddie vaguely remembered getting an e-mail from a mysterious girl that went by the name of KT, saying she was excited to meet all of them. Who the heck was she and how did she get his e-mail?! Does the school seriously just give out personal information like that? What if she could look up his records or something? Anyone could have access to everything personal! But Eddie was torn away from his thoughts when he heard Nina call out behind him; "Eddie! Wait!"_

_He turned around to see her sprinting towards him, waving what looked like a piece of paper in the air. She gasped for breath when she met him again, but spoke anyway. "Give this to Fabian, will you?" She asked, handing him what Eddie now recognized as an envelope, or to be more specific, a letter._

_He took it in his hand and smiled. "Sure thing, Nina." He said. He then slipped off her shoe and folded the paper in half._

_Nina gave him a puzzled look. "What are you doing?" She wondered._

_"For safe keeping," He slipped the letter into his shoe, and stepped back into it, making sure it wouldn't fly or fall out. "And so I don't lose it in that black hole I call a car."_

_"Tell me about it, I still haven't found my science book from the beginning of summer." Nina let out one more laugh and hugged him again, this time a bit tighter. "Bye Eddie."_

_"Bye Nina." He mumbled into her hair._

_Nina loosened her grip around his neck and gave him a sad smile. He could tell tears were welling up in her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of him. She stood on the tips of her toes and gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek, and then spun around, walking back the way she came._

_Eddie stood in shock for a few seconds after she left, processing what just happened. He smiled and laughed to himself, reaching his hand up to touch where she had kissed him. He mentally kicked himself for just standing there like an idiot, because when she turned around to look at him, she laughed loudly and waved._

_Eddie, though he'd never admit it, blushed and chuckled too, waving back at her. He sighed a she disappeared over the hill to her Gran's house, just as the sun was setting. _Just like in the movies, _he thought. And he had to remember that. Because the movies always had happy endings, so all he had to do was wait for Nina's. But hopefully, they'd be a part of each other's happy endings; best friends, partners in crime, and actually _not_ two continents apart._

_Eddie groaned, remembering it was almost dark and his mom wanted him home by now to get ready to leave for school. He scoffed. _Ready for school.

_The words didn't seem to fit just yet, even though every teenager would say that after summer break. But this was different. It wasn't going to be the same without Nina in the England, and that did put a damper on his normal cool, joyous mood. But it was a new year, as she would say, and new things were about to come darting his way whether he'd liked it or not. And God forbid, he'd be able to handle it._

_He let out a sigh once more, only hoping he'd get through it without her. "See ya later, Chosen One." He said, before getting in his car and driving back home._

**3 Days Later: **

I sighed as I plopped back down onto my bed for the umpteenth time that day, covering my face with my hands, trying to shield myself from melancholy and tempting thoughts entering my mind. It was the first day at school, well my _old _school anyway. I...I just don't feel right with not being there today. Every year at exactly this time and date, I'm sprinting down the gravel paths, my suitcase tumbling wildly behind me, towards Anubis House to meet my house mates. Who just happened to be my best friends. And the members of Sibuna. I let out a groan and looked at myself in the mirror.

My face was crimson red and my cheeks were puffy with tear stains. My hair looked like a rat's nest and my eyes were blood shot, making look sickly. I sighed. Obviously, I had been crying. _A lot. _No matter how much I hated being all cooped up alone in my room, it was the best thing for me right now. I knew, and Gran knew it too. She had two home nurses staying with us now, one being an actual nurse, and the other being my aunt Holly.* Our nurse was named Harmony, a petite women who was in her late 20's with long, sleek black hair. She was really sweet and everything, and she was major help to Gran, but it's just tough getting used to having her around. Especially since she hates me. She thinks I cause too much stress for Gran, always wanting to go back to England and her making her want to come with me, when all she could really do was rest and regain her health. So you can see why I'm not exactly at the top of Harmony's "Lovie List" right now.

My Aunt Holly, on the other hand, I am always glad to have around. I haven't gotten to see her in a few years since I've always been in England, and whenever I was back in America, I was always booked solid everyday of my holiday. It felt good to have that cozy family feeling with her around, and it provided a little more comfort with having to stay behind. She always tried to be as supportive as she could of me, but I could tell she felt terrible about how devastated I was. It was nice to be able to talk to her about things, it helped get my emotions out, but I know she'll have to be going soon, considering she has a family of her own as well.

Aunt Holly is married to my Uncle David with two teenage daughters, named Trina and Tori. I know I never mentioned having any cousins-or I actually never mentioned any of my family members besides Gran at all before. My aunt and uncle live in LA, about a half hour away from our house. Gran and I live in a pretty nice sized house even though it's usually only for the two of us, but I still love it. I've lived here since I was nine years old, after my parents' accident.

_Gran. _

Huh. I still haven't told her part in the story yet. Not long after I learned The Chosen One and the Osirian should be kept apart for now, Gran fell ill again...causing me to stay here in America to take care of her and the house...At first I actually tried convincing her to transfer out to a hospital in England before things got really bad, and to be honest I think she was going to try and go through with it, but that's why the doctor's refused and her health took a turn for the worse...I can't believe how selfish I was, actually trying to ask her to move out to another country when she was sick! How terrible can someone get?

But after a few months, Gran was finally able to come home, but only with a nurse to accompany her. Until then, Aunt Holly had stayed at the house with me while she was in the hospital, with Eddie over almost everyday this summer. She's gotten a lot better, being able to walk up and down the stairs without too much help from Harmony, but she was currently downstairs making tea for the both of us, quietly racking her exhausted brain for something, anything, that could even remotely make me feel better.

I've never been the pessimistic type, but I'm sure we both knew that was nearly impossible. There was nothing that could comfort me about not going to England except, well, going to England. And _that _was impossible.

Now I never want to be the one to whine, but I...I just can't help but miss everyone..._so _much. I haven't felt this feeling since my parents were in the hospital eight years ago, that awful, inescapable sorrow and despair that always followed you everywhere; depression.

I know I sound like i just came out of a soap opera, but it's true. I've been depressed for weeks now, ever since I found out I wasn't going to be returning to Anubis House for third year. Or possibly ever. I'd never see my friends again, never kiss my boyfriend, heck, I'll never even figure out another death threatening mystery again! Not anymore...

Ugh, I sound so pathetic! But I just can't shake that pit in my stomach...like my heart is as heavy as cement, and I can't lift it back up. That stupid feeling of tears stinging the back of my eyes, but the very last thing I want to do is cry. That...that feeling where you think there's nothing in your future worth looking forward to, and you just want to give up. But you can't. That's another feeling I hate.

I wonder how Eddie's doing right now. I know he's probably already at the house, getting greeted by everyone and eating sweets made by Trudy. He's probably laughing and talking with everyone, not a care in the world. He's _having fun. _The way it should be. I know I should be happy for him, but I just have this pang of jealousy knowing he has everything I could ever ask for right now, and he didn't even want it in the first place.

I kicked myself for thinking that way. Eddie deserves to be happy and to stay where he belongs, Nina, just like you are. You're where _you _belong. In America. At home.

I flinched as the word _home _echoed around in my head. _This _was not home for me, I couldn't deny that. But it didn't matter now. What's done is done, and there's nothing I can do about it.

All the sudden, I was torn away from my thoughts when I heard my door creak open. I spun around expecting to see Gran, but instead I saw Aunt Holly holding two steaming mugs in her hands, a warm, yet concerned smile on her face. "Here you go, hunny." She said softly.

I smiled at her a took the cup in my hands, feeling the warmth on the tips of my fingers. "Thanks, Aunt Holly." I replied, taking a sip.

I mentally sighed. Yet another thing that reminded me of England. Do you know how many gallons of tea I must've drank during the school year? Probably more than even our math teacher could count. Fabian and I would always sit on the couch and drink it together when we couldn't sleep, or just when we simply wanted it. I really did miss those times, but I missed Fabian most of all.

"Are you alright, sweetie?" Aunt Holly asked me.

I tried to put on my best brave face and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine.

She tilted her head and raised her eye brows, giving me a little smirk that meant _Don't-You-Dare-Lie-to-Me-Nina. _"Hunny, please," She said, taking a seat next to me on my bed. "I have two teenage daughters I live with, you out of all people should know that I practically have mom powers."

I laughed. I then opened my mouth up to respond, but closed it when she gave the look again, practically _daring _me to try and lie again. I sighed. It was no use lying to Aunt Holly, or to anyone for that matter, it was just too obvious. It was probably best to let my wall drop and let someone in. "I just...miss them so much..." I whispered hoarsely.

Her brow furrowed in concern and she put her mug on my side table, pulling me into her arms. "Oh," She cooed. "I know, hunny. I'm so sorry."

We rocked back and forth on my bed as I let silent tears down my cheeks. I could tell she didn't really know what to say, given that she'd never experienced this type of situation and I wasn't her daughter, but I didn't mind much. I just needed to someone to really hold me right now. "Everything will be alright, just give it time." She whispered to me.

I nodded and slightly pulled from her embrace. "Thanks Gran," I sniffled, wiping the tears away from my cheeks. "Don't take this the wrong way, Aunt Holly, but I really just want to be alone."

She nodded and lifted herself from my bed. "Say no more, sweetie," She then picked her mug back up and then leaned down to kiss my forehead. I smiled as she turned back around in the doorway. "Dinner will be ready in an hour," She said softly.

I nodded and she closed my bedroom door behind her. I sighed and fell back onto my bed again, like I had been doing all day, and clawed at my hair. I then started to sob again, reality kicking in and remembering why I was crying in the first place. I didn't stop until I heard my phone give a little 'ding', it's screen lighting up wildly, revealing my wallpaper of everyone in front of Anubis House. This made me cry even harder.

But either way, I still picked it up and answered it, swiping my wallpaper up and entering my lock code. I looked at my messages to see a text from Eddie. I quickly pressed it and read it eagerly.

_**Landed safe and bout 2 meet everyone in the parkin lot**_

I gave a sigh of relief, knowing that he had made it there safely, but felt a tinge of pain when I read over the words 'meet everyone'. That's almost exactly what I would text to Gran when I got out of the taxi that always picked me up from the airport. I picked my phone back up and texted him;

_**Great! Don't forget what we talked about! **_

Almost before I could even walk away, Eddie replied with; _**How could I forget ) ttyl, time 2 tip the driver**_

I frowned and set my phone down, deciding not to reply. For one, he was probably busy with the mob of hugs and hi's he was getting, and honestly, I really didn't want to hear about how great it was to see everyone when I might never be able to experience that feeling again. I know you must have a lot of questions right now, like why am I stuck here in America moping around when I could be feeling unbelievable happiness in England at school, why I can't stop crying, or why can't I just pick up a dang phone and call someone? Well I know this is hard to believe, but I have questions too. And maybe, just maybe, all of our questions will be answered for the both of us. But it'll take time. I sighed once more.

Lots of time, Nina.

_**. . .**_

**Not the best ending, I know, but I'm a little nervous about rewriting and posting this again. But here are some things you guys should know before you really get into the story;**

***Every chapter will most likely be a rewrite of every episode in Nina's point of view, there fore you guys have the right to virtually slap me if I don't update nearly every week.**

***Holly is the actual mom of Tori and Trina from Victorious, and she is Gran's daughter, hence why she's taking care of her mother now.**

***This story isn't in the crossover section because it doesn't concentrate on Victorious characters (And characters mentioned from other Nick movies later on, like Hunter) as much as the first story did, but they will make many appearances and some play a vital part in Nina's life at home, so when you see Andre, Tori, Beck, and everyone pop up out of no where, now you know why.**

***I might switch point of views between characters in Anubis House and Nina's side of the story in the future, but it all does depend if there were enough gaps in episodes. **

**Thanks so much for reading guys, and tell me if you liked it, hated it, needs improvement, if you have ideas you want me to add, anything. Also, comment on how you like the new season! I seriously miss Nina A LOT :'(**

**Stay Strong, Sibuna Lovers! ~Suki17**


	2. House of Secrets, House of Anger

I woke up the next morning to the continuous 'ping' of my computer. I sighed as my eyes slowly began to flutter open, and my mind was able to process what the noise was. I glanced over my clock on my side table, seeing the bright red numbers flash _2:47 AM. _I let out a groan, I totally forgot there was such a large time difference between here in England. I sat up on bed, stretching my arms out over my head then reaching in front of me to grab my alptop from the foot of my bed.

I logged on to see my ChumChatter page blinking, meaning I had a new message. I groaned again. How could I have been so stupid as to not cancel my account? How could I not have cover might be blown. I clicked on the window and opened it up to see about six messages from Fabian.

I suddenly felt terrible.

I at least owe him enough to message back, telling him I'm ok. He's probably worried sick. I pressed on his messages, to see the first one popping up as; _**Nina! It's Fabian. We were told you won't be returning to Anubis House, why? Are you alright? Where are you?**_

I swiftly replied; _**All is explained in the letter. **_

_**What letter? **_He asked. It was like he wouldn't look away from his computer for one single second in fear he'd might miss my reply at how fast he was answering.

My eyes went wide and I almost let out a small gasp, slapping my hand over my mouth to stop it. I should've known this would happen, Eddie must've forgot to give Fabian my letter! That means he still doesn't know anything yet, and neither do the others! Ugh, darn it Eddie! I quickly typed; _**Ask Eddie...**_ Hoping he'd get the hint to go kill that boy.

This time it took awhile longer for Fabian to answer, but after a few minutes, my computer 'pinged' and I let out a breath I didn't know I had been holding. _**Have to go to class soon, talk to you later darling. Miss you lots 3**_

I smiled at my screen as tears began to well up in my eyes again. God, I missed Fabian so much. I hated that I had to do this to him-to everyone-but I know it's what had to be done. I'm trying to protect them and this was the only way. It just broke my heart knowing I could never tell him so many things that should've been said already, like how much I missed him when we were broken up, why Eddie and I really have to kept apart, and just to be able to give him updates on how Gran's doing like I normally would. But most of all, I'd never get the chance to say the three words I needed to tell him most before he totally moves on and forgets all about me;

_I love you._

Gran must've heard my hysterical sobs from her room, because she hobbled down the hallway as fast as she could to my room, the small "thump" of her cane every few steps she took. She quickly swung the door open to see what was going on, flipping the light switch on. Gran looked absolutely exhausted. Her eyes were cloudy with a fog that lied over her bright blue eyes, and she was a whole two shades paler than her normal color. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, but I didn't know whether it was because she had to get out of bed so quickly or if she was truly worried about me.

But before either of us could make a sudden movement, Harmony rushed in, bunny slippers and all. She glanced at me, noticed that it was me who was the one crying, and sent me an annoyed glare. A frantic expression came across her face when she saw Gran standing in the middle of my room and she rushed to her side immediately. "Evelyn, you know you shouldn't be out of bed at this hour, what has gotten into you?" She asked, taking her arm and starting to lead her into the hallway.

But once Gran connected me crying on my bed and the still-open window of Fabian's messages, she quickly pulled away and quickly wrapped her arms around me, stroking my hair, trying to calm me down. She told Harmony to give us a moment, but she looked absoluetly flabbergasted and shook her head in dispproval. "Fine," She scolded, "But only for a little while. You don't need all these..._distractions _with your current condition." She eyed me as she backed out of my room, closing the door, but I was too upset to care anymore.

Gran and I started there for minutes, the room filled with my soft sobs and her attempt at comforting whispers in my ear. "Shhh, it's alright dear, it's alright Nina." She would say, but I could tell she was getting all too used to this routine of having a break down all day, everyday. I could tell she was getting tired of it, that she just didn't want to deal with it anymore, and I felt terrible making her worry about me when she clearly had other things going on. But no matter how hard I'd try to be strong for her, Gran always found a way to see how I was truly feeling. I just can't help it. She just got me that way; it's like she could read me like a book, and she didn't make any effort to keep that a secret.

That didn't make me feel any less guilty, but really, how would you feel if everything you loved was ripped away from you like it was never yours? Let me be the first to tell you, it _hurts. _ I wouldn't want to wish this pain on anyone, because no one deserves to feel this way. Ever.

After almost twenty minutes of sticking it out with me, Gran tucked me back into bed and kissed my forehead, telling me I was exhausted and that I should go back to sleep for a few hours. At first I hesitated, still bawling, but agreed knowing she was right. As my head hit the pillow, tears still streamed down my cheeks and I sniffled. It didn't take too long for me to fall asleep, but I tossed and turned vigorously the whole time I lied there. I fell asleep to the distant memories of adventures from the past, shedding a tear for every single one.

**Later that Morning:**

It's funny how you're in that in between stage when you're basically asleep, but yet you can still vaguely make out your surroundings and sub conscious. It takes your brain a second to process what's going on and finally realize you're not in dream land anymore; that it's actually happening. That's how I woke up for the second time this morning.

_Crash. Yell. Sob. Repeat. Crash. Yell. Sob. Repeat. Crash. Yell. Sob. Repeat._

I groggily opened my eyes to hear each one of those sounds, the sun shining through my window forcing me to close the, again and start to drift back off. I didn't know why I was so tired and not getting up right now; I can never go back to sleep once I wake up in the morning. I always hate sleeping when the sun is up in the morning. The shadows of night were my best friends back in England, and I guess that still hasn't changed.

But then it all started to click.

Crash...when things crashed, they _shattered, _and what usuallu came after yelling around here? _Crying. _And we never cried unless something was really, really wrong. I then bolted upright in my bed, snatchig my blankets off of me and swinging my legs over to reach the floor. I grabbed my robe of it's hook and struggled to yank it on as I stumbled through the hallways and down the stairs. I almost burst right through the kitchen doors, but quickly stepped back once I heard Gran and Aunt Holly speaking to each other;

"Mom, what are you doing?" Aunt Holly asked, tenderly reaching over to my Gran, who was currently hunched over on the ground. I then saw shards of one of our dishes all over the floor, that must've been what shattered. _Glass. _

Aunt Holly gave out a small gasp once she saw my Gran had been cut multiple time by the broken glass, causing her hands to bleed rapidly. She frowned and grabbed a near by towel from the counter top. "Oh, Mom, you can't keeo going on like this!" She cried, treating Gran's hands and helping her back up. "Honestly, getting up in the middle of the night to get her to stop sobbing? For almost the fifth night in a row? It has you so tired you can't even get a plate down from the shelf!"

"I just hate seeing her like this," Gran replied, both Aunt Holly and I knowing she was talking about me. "She suffering all because of me, because I'm in such bad shape. She's lost so much already in life, and I can't give her one measly experience in high school without ruining more of her life."

"Don't talk like that," Aunt Holly told her. "You know it's not your fault Mom, it was Nina's decision to stay here in the first place. She knows what's really important, and I'm pretty sure family outlaws going to Hogwarts anyway. It's not your fault she stays in her room all day moping when she could be putting herself to use by getting back out there at least trying to be her old self again," Aunt Holly then paused and closed her eyes. She let out a long sigh. "I already made the arrangements with Prinipal Dubois. I think you honestly need to tell her soon."

"I know I do, I just haven't found the right time to," Gran answered. She sniffled, and that's when I realized she started shedding tears. She gazed up at Aunt Holly, unsure ness in her eyes. "And the saddest part is, I don't even know if I'm doing the right thing for her anymore."

Aunt Holly smiled softly and rubbed her arm. "You are." She said. Her and Gran pulled each other into a tight embrace and I could've sworn I saw Aunt Holly start to tear up as well. "She's going to be ok, Mom. I know the girls will definitely be there to help her get back to normal, and that they'd be more than happy to spend time with their little cousin again. And I'm positive that their friends will be overjoyed to see their Nina after all this time." She chuckled, smiling at Gran warmly. "I think this will be really good for her."

"What will be good for me?" I asked abruptly, stepping out from my hiding stop behind the doorway. Aunt Holly and Gran both gasped slightly, gaping at me from across the room. Gran shook her headm shaking herself out of her shock, and whispered for Aunt Holly to go into the room. She frowned at the sudden request, looking back at me with hopeful eyes, and then back at Gran, leaving the kitchen to join Harmony in the living room. "What was she talking about Gran?"

"Your Aunt Holly is just worried about you dear, that's all." She said, with a smile that I knew was fake.

"Gran, I know you too well to be able to tell when you're keeping something from me," I laughed, trying to lighten the mood. But my smile quickly faded when I saw no change in her expression. "So what is it?"

Gran sputtered for a second, trying to quickly find a cover up for whatever it is she needed to tell me, but was then replaced by a long sigh. She hung her head and shook it, as if scolding herself in her mind. She looked up at me. "Nina..." She said, starting out slowly. "I think it'd be a good idea to get your mind off of everything and keep you occupied with things you used to love to do..."

"Where is this going, Gran?" I asked her. I had a feeling this was _not _something I wanted to hear.

"Well I just don't want you to keep dwelling on this all the time; it's not healthy and you're starting to go past the normal stage of depression. And now I want you to know that I love you, Nina, and your friends and I only want the best for you-"

"Gran," I interrupted, my heart starting to race from nervousness, "What are you saying?"

She closed her eyes and let out a sigh. I knew this was hard for her and that I shoudn't keep pushing, but I just couldn't help it. I had to know this. "I think you should start to attend Hollywood Arts again." She told me.

My mouth dropped in utter shock. I thought she had already made arrangements for me to be enrolled into a public school in California, that it was already done! What on earth changed? "W-What?" I gasped.

"You used to love it so much. You can take all the classes you want, maybe get into writing your stories again, or maybe even music? And all your friends and family are there, and-"

"No, they're not. All my friends are in England, Granm thousands and thousands of miles away from here." I quickly snapped. I regretted how cold I sounded when I saw how her face fell.

"I mean your old friends, the ones you were once glued at the hip to before you left for borading school in the first place." She replied calmly. I sighed and began to rub my temples. I really didn't want to fight with Gran right now, not after all the controlling and devastating emotions I've been already going through on my own. "I've talked about it with a few of them and-"

"You all planned for me to tranfer schools behind my back?" I asked, shocked. I spun around to see Aunt Holly standing in the door way to see what was going on, but they looked down with guilty expressions.

"Nina, darling, we only did it because I knew if I asked you first you wouldn't even consider going," Gran told me. "You've been so caught up in England that-"

"You're right Gran, I wouldn't. How could you do this behind my back like that? You honestly think taking some silly singing classes are going to make me forget? Nothing is going to be able to take away the pain of not seeing Fabian, or not sharing a room with Amber, or not being in England!" I started raise my voice. "I can't keep doing this; being afraid to live my life the way _I _want to. I've always given up what I want for someone else, and I can't keep being such a push over. Everything I want is miles away, and I hate even thinking this, but all i want is just for things to go back to normal!" Tears were streaming down my face now, and seeing the look on Gran's face, I just couldn't take it anymore. I just grabbed my keys and ran out the door. I heard her hurry to the doorway and call my name, but I didn't look back. I ripped my car door open, thrusting my keys into the ignition and pulling recklessly out of the driveway.

And I just started driving.

Not a care in thw world, and I didn't even know where I was going. My ohone started to sing out a slow, lovely tune when Gran's name appeared on my screen. I glared at the photo that just happened to pop up; I reconized it as our picture from New Year's Eve two years ago, before I left for England. As the past smile up at me, I hesitated before I hit ignore and switched my phone off.

Who knows who else she'll call and beg to try to get in contact with me.

I can't believe Gran would do this to me. I mean, switching my schools without even telling me? And then gossiping about it to my old friends behind my back? She's never done anything like this before! I mentally sighed. Then again, I've never been this depressed before. I know she means well, but she should've known I wouldn't want to deal with this.

Granted, she didn't actually know what was fully going on in the situation, because I wouldn't tell her-or couldn't tell her- why this was hitting me so hard. But really, how could anyone expect me to just come out and say it? It's not that simple to just come downstairs and say "Hey Gran, I've been involved in a life threatening ancient Egyptian mystery for the past three years and I'm the leader of group that's dedicated to solve it!" Yeah, that's definitely the way to tell me now sickly Grandmother that I've almost been killed several times trying to keep my friends, let alone the whole world, safe from evil. Way to go Nina.

That didn't make it any easier to tell her how I was the reason she'd almost died last year and why she was still having all of these horrible health problems today. In a way, it really wasn't Gran's fault for me not being in England, like I had yelled at her for. It was mine. If I hadn't blown up in her face like I did, things would've went a lot more smoothly. I scoffed. Like anything ever goes that well for me.

But I was knocked out of my thoughts when I finally noticed where I was now pulling into. I was so caught up with my ranting to myself rhat I never realized just where I was subconsciously being steered;

_Hollywood Arts._

Great. The last place I wanted to be right now. I guess it was just such a habit of coming here everytime I was in California, whether it was when I used to go to school here or my summer classes I volunteered for, but it's always just been part of my normal routine when I was at Gran's. I sighed as I pulled into the parking lot and got out of the car. It felt so strange walking up the entrance past the cafeteria without seeing any dance rehearsals, singing practices, or just wihtout anyone buzzing around out here. Hollywood Arts was always full of crazy, extravagant people, whether it was the students or the teachers. I was surprised to find the doors unlocked at this time of day, but then again school doesn't start here for another week.

I've never seen it so dark and so..._boring. _None of the lights were on, so the only things barely keeping the room alive was the slivers of sunlight coming from the windows. None of the lockers glowed with eye grabbing designs like they usually do, the floors didn't sparkle, and it didn't look like a dream at all. That's what Hollywood Arts is _always _supposed to look like. I started to see memories of walking down this very hallway with my friends, laughing loudly at the stupidest things, no terrorizing mystery hanging over our heads trying to dampen our moods. We had absoluetly all the time in the world;

_"Nina!" I turned and instantly smiled brightly to see Beck Oliver, the school heart throb and my best friend, charging down the corridor towards my locker. You could tell he was excited by the way he ran; his legs slipping all over newly polished floors, causing his beloved Converse to squeak under him, his right arm flailing every which way to try and keep his balance, as the other clutched his bag close to his side._

_He literally jumped over some kids who were sitting in the hall by their lockers to reach me and I laughed loudly as he kept slipping. By the time he finally made it, Beck slid once again, but only to have me catch him and pull back up this time. "You wanna tell me why you just attempted to break your neck to get down here?" I asked, letting out a chuckle._

_He paused for a second, panting. "Did you..." He said, gasping from breath, "Get your letter?"_

_I tensed, knowing what he was talking about. My letter England. The one that decided my future, possibly my career, and even my life;s course. The one that changed everything for me. You see, today was August 15th, our first day of school since Summer Vacation. For the past couple weeks I haven't been answering his calls or texts because my letter never came, and I thought that meant I wasn't getting in, so I was depressed for a week or so. But today was the day that I could avoid the question anymore and Beck decided to corner me before class starts. "Yeah..." I said slowly, a frown on my face._

_Beck's smile immediately dropped from his face. He stared dumbfounded at me for longer than he probably should have, but quickly shook his head to snap himself out of it. "Nina, those guys are idiots not to accept you. You have the best grades around, have all the talent a girl could need, and-"_

_"I got the scholarship!" I suddenly cried, not being able to contain my joy from him any longer._

_Beck's mouth dropped and he laughed, picking me up and spinning me around. I squealed, hugging him even tigher. "Yes!" He cried, setting me down and squeezing my shoulders. "I knew you could do it, Neens!" He told me. "This is awesome!"_

I smiled as I remembered that day, missing the hugs where Beck would pick me up, spinning me around and around. It was the best feeling in the world, and I can't believe I've gone so long without it. It had both of us in pure happiness, but yet a little disappointment that it had to end so quickly.

Out of all the people I haven't seen in so long, beck was probably one of them I missed the most. We've been friends for years, ever since we met the day I was enrolled here. He was one of the first people who gave me grace for not understanding anything, so we've always been super close. Even when he started dating his girlfriend Jade, we remained friends. Jade never really liked me, but I guess we kind of warmed up to each other over time. After a few months, she finally let me get to know her and we started to hang out without Beck there, just the two of us. We shared favorite music, interests, and even went shopping a few times at the mall.

Jade wasn't eally as bad as everyone says, she's just gone through a really hard time with not being accepted by her family, that it just made sense for her not to trust anyone else; so she didn't have to give them a chance to try and accept her. I'd never say this to her, but I know it's just a defense mechanism so she wouldn't have to risk letting someone in and then getting rejected. Which I can definitely relate to.

_I remembered the night before I caught my first flight for England; it was late at night and I was just then getting into bed so I could get up early tomorrow when my phone started ringing with multiple text tones. I picked it up, a puzzled look on my face. I recieved four text messages, but all from different people. One was from Cat, another friend of mine from Hollywood Arts and she sent me the word "Come". What? Then I looked at Beck's message, and it said "down". Uh...what's with the random one word thing? Were their phones glitching maybe? But then I got another text, this time from my cousin Tori, saying "stairs". Honestly?_

_Then I got the final message. It was from Andre, sending my my own name, "Nina." Ok, something's definitely up. Four messages from four different people saying four different words. Is it some kind of forward maybe? Some kind of new trend? It's my fault for being so out of the loop; all I've been thinking about is England ever since I've gotten my letter._

_But that's when I started to realize it. I reread my texts over and over, slowly connecting them together. It wasn't until I heard a soft melody flowing through my open window did I finally understand. I raced to my window sill, looking down at my backyard. I gasped, not believing what I was seeing. There stood every one of my best friends, all smiling up at me. My backyard had been totally rearranged; light were strung from the roof to the pateo and were wrapped around all the posts and trees. The tables and chair had been pushed over to the side and a large stereo sat in the grass. I smiled and let out a laugh. This was _insane.

_"Well?" Andre called up at me. "Did you get my texts?"_

_That's when I figured it out._

_"Come_

_Down_

_Stairs,_

_Nina."_

_I laughed again and raced out of the room, hopping down the stairs and ripping the back door open. I could've sworn I saw Gran chuckling in the living room from the corner of my eye, but I was too excited to care. I ran out to the backyard, opening my arms and screaming. Tori and cat both squealed too, running just as fast. I literally _jumped _into everyone's arms, and we immediately crashed to the ground in a gigantic group hug. We didn't care if we were being suffocated or that our ribs were about to crack, because we just didn't let go. I started shedding not-so-silent tears, having them almost turn into hysterical sobs, but I kept smiling the whole time. We all laughed and cried with each other there for the longest time. Not even caring that the neighbors were trying to sleep and I had to get up at 4:00 A.M. tomorrow. _

_"I'm going to miss you guys so much," I whispered, hoping they'd understand how much I really meant it._

_"We're going to miss you too, Neens." Tori answered, giving me a teary-eyed smile._

_I smiled back and let out a laugh, sniffling and wiping my eyes. Beck shuffled over on his knees and put a hand on my shoulder, rubbing my back with care. "This is going to be awesome for you, Nina." He said._

_"I know, I'm just going to miss America so much-"_

_"I know," He cut me off. "I know. But everything's going to be ok, Nina, I promise. You're going to have an amazing time in England and make amazing friends who will love you just as much as we do. And I promise that we'll see you just as soon as you get off that plane every chance we get. Ok?"_

_I smiled and nodded at him, trying not to let him know I was on the verge of tears again. "Ok," I whispered back._

_A beautiful song came on, and I was surprised by how well Tori knew my taste in music since it was her Ipod we were using. Everyone slowly got up and either started talking or found a partner to dance with, and I went over to talk to Robbie and Rex for a few minutes. We almost to the conversation of how Rex is going to "miss" my nerdiness and me helping him with his homework all the time (how will he pass math now?) when I felt a slight tap on my shoulder and turned. I then saw Andre facing me with a smile on his face. "Can I cut in?" He asked jokingly._

_I smiled and nodded, letting him lead me a few feet away from everyone else. We didn't so much as dance, but more like _hugged _each other extra tight and long this time. I don't think I've ever expirenced such a hug in my entire life. Andre held me like he was afraid I would vanish into thin air, like this was the last time he would ever see me again. It was protective, yet gentle. I can't really explain it...it was just so..._loveable.

_"You gotta promise me somethin'," He told me. "You gotta promise me that we won't drift apart for we'll stay Friends for life, always, right?"_

_"Right."_

That was the only promise I haven't been able to keep in my entire life, which is terrrible. I couldn't reassure my best friend that I wouldn't forget about our friendship and come see him again, because that's not what I did. I didn't see anyone from America, even in the summer. At first we tried, utterly, extremely hard, but soon even our small willingness to keep in touch severed for what I thought would be forever.

We asked multiple times to hang out with each other, to meet up, but one of us was always busy and prevented us from seeing one another. And that one os us usually being me. And at first it was just kind understanding;

_"Hey Beck," I answered, picking up my phone and grinning widely when I saw it was him._

_"Hey! I heard you were in town and wanted to know if you could hang out this Saturday, you know, maybe catch a drag race like I used to take you to?"_

_My smile slowly faded as his offer progressed. I had dinner with my uncle and cousin Hunter this weekend; I couldn't skip out on that. But how could I turn down our old weekly races..."Oh, Beck I'm so sorry, but I can't. I have to spend time with the family this weekend."_

_I heard him sigh. " I know, but didn't you say that last week?"_

_I frowned at this. He was right though; ever since I've been back for summer break I've been busy. The last time he asked to hang out was on Tuesday of last week, and he wanted to go see a movie, but I had promised Gran I'd take her out to the new art museum on Main Street. But still...I hadn't heard Beck so disapointed over something so small... But that wasn't the only time either. The next day, Cat and Jade requested a video chat and asked if I wanted to go to the mall with them later that afternoon._

_"Can't," I said, "I volunteered at the library."_

_"Sunday?"_

_"Choir at church."_

_"Sometime this week?"_

_"I'm taking summer classes at Hollywood Arts so I don't _totally _miss out on all the fun," I chuckled, trying to lighten the mood._

_I heard Cat sigh and saw Jade roll her eyes."School in the summer? What do you do with all that free time." She said sarcastically._

_I sighed and gave her an apologetic look. "Come on Jade, you know I'd hang out with you guys if I could. It's just-"_

_"Just what, Nina?" She snapped. We all waited for my reply, including me, but I just couldn't figure out exactly what to say to that. What was I supposed to do? She should kow that I'd be there if I could, but excuse me for doing prodeuctive with my time. She can't just expect me to drop everything I'm doing just when she wants to go shopping. When she finally got fed up with waiting for me to answer, she just rolled her eyes again and said; "Whatever, _Golden Girl, _I don't have time for people like you." _And ended the chat.

And then this same situation repated over and over again with all of us. There was even one time where Robbie showed up in his costume for Comic Con that we were supposed to go to, and I was still in my pajamas because I had totally spaced our trip as Rogue and Cyclops this year. How awful is that? Very few times were the others busy instead of me, but that didn't make the gap any smaller between us. Days turned into weeks, weeks turned to months, and months turned into years for us. Before any of us knew it, almost two years had gone by without seeing each other, and it was like we didn't even exist anymore.

As I continued to walk down the halls of the school, I wa suddenly taken aback by the sudden pain and high volume that my thoughts started causing. Call it a side effect of being the Chosen One, but when my thoughts became this intense, they really started to hurt. I grasped my head in pain and fell against the lockers for support, letting out a grunt. I remembered how so many words were said, and how they all started to echo around me. So many of them were like knives stabbing me in the back, and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't silence the noise in my head.

_"Jade, I'm trying to make an effort here-"_

_"Well you don't need to make an effort anymore, Nina!"_

_"How many times are you going to blow me off?"_

_"Beck, please-"_

_"We're drifting apart!"_

_"We need to make time for each other!"_

_"Look, I'm sorry, but I just can't do this anymore."_

_"You know, I was right about you. You are just as fake and full of yourself as I thought the first time!"_

_"You said this wouldn't happen to us, you broke your promise!"_

"I'm not the only one," I replied aloud to the voice in my head, trying to regain control of my thoughts.

_"I should've known this would happen."_

_"How could you do this?"_

"It's not my fault!" I snapped back, trying to make the pain stop.

_"Why did you lie, Nina?"_

_"Nina, why couldn't you have tried?"_

_"Nina-"_

_"Nina," _

_"Nina."_

_"Nina!"_

_"NINA!"_

"Stop it!" I screamed, lunging forward and driving the car key I was holding into the nearest locker. I stabbed it with everything I had, in attempt to stop the noise, and I dragged it down the middle, leaving a long scratch on the metal. It screeched out like it was almost in as much as I was. And that's when it stopped. All the screaming, all the yelling, everything, it all just stopped. I finally realized what i was doing and dropped my keys to the ground and slid my back down the wall, sobbing.

"Destroying school property won't solve your problems," A voice said from behind me. I looked up, and my eyes went wide. "Or make the pain hurt any less."

"Andre," I gasped. Andre Harris, the guy I hadn't seen for almost three years, now stood only a mere few feet away from me. Out of all the people that always critisized me for not being around as much as I used to, Andre was the only one who never ragged on me. Well, I mean Tori and Trina really couldn't get mad at me since they were family and I got to see them without conditions, but out of my friends ayway. He never said anything. Not one thing. We sometimes texted and e-mailed, sometimes he would send me snipets of the new song he was working on from time to time, but we never spoke of how we didn't get to see each other anymore. I knew this was hitting Andre pretty hard, maybe one of the hardest, but I was always too scared to bring it up in fear of losing him to. So we kept it distant, just keeping down to small talk about the weather and school, nothing too major. But a part of me always felt guilty for being such a chiken as not to bring it up.

Slowly, Andre started walking towards me. He had his hands in his pockets and what looked like a cold expression on his face. He leaned against the lockers, sliding his back down the wall and sitting next to me. He glanced up at the magnificent art I had just ruined, on someone's own personal locker, and chuckled. He looked at me with a raised eye brow and that goofy smirk he used to always wear on his face. "That painting was whack anyways." He joked.

I rolled my eyes and smiled at the ground. Well I see his jokes still haven't gotten better since the last time I saw him. I snickered to myself. Typical Andre. "So how did you find me?" I asked quietly, finally getting the tears to stop.

He then pulled out his phone from his pocket and waved it in front of my face. "Grandma Martin was worried sick. She called me 7 times before I was able to pick up." He told me.

I snorted. "Figures." I scoffed, pulling my legs up to my chest and resting my chin on my knees. "Should've known she would try something like that."

"Hey, she was only worried about you. And I couldn't blame her by how you just drove off like that." Andre pointed out at me.

I looked at him at him in shock. "Seriously? You can say that to me? You don't even know the whole story, Andre, so don't go playing your stupid blame game this time." I barked. I sighed when I saw his mouth close and his face fall. "I'm sorry, it's just things have been really...complicated lately."

"It's cool, I understand," Andre replied, relaxing a little bit and sitting back down. "Just...don't freak on me like that, you're not the only one with problems around here...but I'll bite." He said. "What's up?"

All the sudden, before I could reply, we heard a loud slam of a door and rapid footsteps coming towards us. "Who's out there?" They said. It wasn't until that they came running around the corner did I finally reconize who it was. There stood my old teacher, Mr. Sikowitz, bagging sweater,mismatching pants, and all. "Andre?" He asked, looking at us. He walked a little closer, and paused abruptly, blinking a few times and rubbing his eyes. "N-Nina? Nina Martin, my student from freshmen year, is that you?" He wondered.

I nodded and smiled. I guess I'll be getting these reactions a lot more often now that I'm back. "Hi Mr. Sikowitz, it's good to see you."

"Uh, to you as well," He replied, looking me up and down. "My, how've you changed. How long has it been, two, maybe three weeks?"

"Years, actually," I laughed, recalling how dense he could be. "I've gone to a boarding school ever since I turned 15."

"Oh..." Sikowitz replied, obviously not understanding me. He then let his eyes wonder around the rest of the room, first looking at Andre, me again, and then the locker behind us. His eyes immidiately widened. "Well...that's quite the extravagant design for a student..." He said, eyeing it closely.

I glanced at Andre, nervous that I might be caught, but he sensed my worry and shook his head, giving me a wink. "Yeah, you know ever since that new Zombie movie came out last month, kids have been a lot more destructive. The start of a new trend for the youngsters," He stated, hoping Sikowitz would buy it.

Thank Anubis I have an idiot for a teacher.

"Ah, yes, that's right!" He exclaimed. "Such directors should be careful with what they influence our kids with...But, that doesn't matter. What matters is that you two are still here, in _school, _when you only have one week of summer left! So go, go see the world, get into trouble, fall in love, feel the rush of the teenage life! Don't waste your time her with your boring old teacher! Come on now, go, go, go!" And with that, he started pushing us out towards the main hallway.

Andre and I laughed and started for the doors, but stopped when we heard him say one more thing to us; "And Miss Martin," He called. I turned to look at him. "I look forward to seeing you in my class on Monday morning." He smirked.

I smiled back and nodded. "You sure will." I giggled. Maybe going back to school won't be so bad?

Well, I was about to find out.

**I'm so sorry for such a huge delay guys, I know I said I would try to update every Thursday, but my tests and work have been killing me. I'be got to tell you, I wasn't very pleased with the last few lines with Sikowitz, but since they cancled Victorious, I've been in quite a rut with what he would say to something like this, so sorry about that. I can't believe Amber had to leave though. What, are they going to get rid of EVERY good character in this show? Who's going to play the stupid-but-actually-super-itelligent-blond type now? Willow? I don't think so.**

**But anyways, I hope you guys like it, and if you have any requests or ideas, I'm always open. Love you!**

**~Suki17**


	3. House of Let Downs, House of Misery

Dear Nina,

This has gotta be short since im on my phone and batteries 'bout 2 die. We found Frobisher's crypt but it was KT's idea to lock the door both ways to keep Robert safe. So no ones gettin in or out...including us. Fantastic. Alfie and Patricia are the only one who know we're down here, and their supposed to come get us. But for some reason that's takeng a whole lot longer than we thought it was. And by that I mean we've been locked here for 2 days.

I just wanted to give you a update and talk to 1 last person before I die, if I'm going to be stuck down here forever with no way out. Do you know how hard it is for me to go without food for that long? I'll be surprised if I make it until morning. Hope America is awesome right now and you're not trapped in a basement somewhere. I'll e-mail you later if I ever live to charge my phone again. Bye Neens.

-Eddie

I sighed as I scrolled through the e-mail on my phone under the table of my Poetry Lecture class. Every week I received updates from Eddie, mainly about Sibuna, and sometimes about regular stuff we used to talk about to bring a smile to both of our faces. We used to fight about which bands were better and if reading was actually stupid or not all the time. I snorted. _Back in the good old days. _

I used to get letters from everyone else, too, Fabian, Patricia, Amber- but once they saw I never replied, they quickly started to slow, until none came at all anymore. I haven't spoken to anyone but Eddie in so many months, and I hated it, but I just kept telling myself that there was nothing I could do. I was doing the right thing. I had to be.

I knew it hurt them that I never answered in something as so simple as a piece of paper, but I've always been terrible at goodbyes...But I also know, that somewhere down the road, the topic of why I had to leave would come up, and I just couldn't get into that again. I had just started to be myself again, just started to be ok with living here again. I can finally tolerate it. And I couldn't go back to that feeling of depression.

"No," I muttered to myself. "Not again." Not when I have people to take of _here. _I have Gran, my cousins, and my friend André...

_André. _So far he was the only one of my friends who actually talked to me, or even acknowledged my existence. I'd been back to school for months now, and I _still _hadn't fixed things with my old friends.

Ok, well maybe I wasn't totally alone. I had a few people that talked to me every once in awhile, a few acquaintances that were glad to see me. Sometimes they invite me to sit with them at lunch and I accept, but none of them were really _my _friends. You know, those ones that have your back and you can actually call yours. I didn't have those here yet. Well, not including André of course. André had probably been one of the most patient people with me; everyday at lunch when I was too afraid to sit with the group, he stayed with me at the table in the corner and we traded lunches. I know his friends wondered where he was everyday and they didn't understand why he sat so far away so often, but he didn't really go into details and just brushed it off.

I know it's ridiculous that I can't sit with guys I used to call my best friends, let alone talk to them, but after all that had happened between us I seriously doubt things would hardly be the same. My _cousin _was one of those friends for crying out loud! But how would they feel about me now? It was awkward enough with Tori and Trina. We just sat on the couch in silence, not making eye contact until Aunt Holly and Uncle David practically _forced _us to talk. They said they were going to leave us alone, but we all knew they were just hiding behind the basement door.

Not long after that, we let our normal selves kick in and we all started cracking up like we used to. That's when we finally got into a conversation, talking about what I missed over the past few years and how England had been. It was great actually; even though that was probably my most uncomfortable visits with them. By the end we all hugged and Tori promised to walk with me to class on the first Monday of school. Which she did, and I was grateful, since her class was all the way across the school from mine.

But I was brought out of my thoughts when I felt a strong hand on my shoulder. I jumped slightly and turned to se André, an amused smirk on his face. He always came to pick me up from poetry class so we could walk to lunch together, and I guess I must've missed hearing the bell since I looked around and everyone had gone. I quickly got up from my seat and pulled my bag over my shoulder. "Sorry," I said, "I was totally spaced."

"Don't sweat it," André replied, his flickering to my phone. 'Who ya texting?"

"I just got an e-mail from Eddie again, he was just talking about the usual stuff. You know Eddie, being all dramatic and stuff-" I told him, trying to blow it off before he could say anything.

But I was too late. Andre's face immediately hardened and he frowned at me. Oh no. "You have _got _to stop being so hung up on them. Nina. It ain't good fo' ya head." He said, his slightly ghetto slang etching his voice. "You gotta move on now."

"I know, it's just he wanted to talk and he knew I would be here, and I can't just leave him..." I sighed, rubbing my temples.

"I get that. But Nina, there's gotta be a way to get your mind off them. Ya eyes have been glued to that phone for the past four months, ever since you got here," André pointed out. He was right, of course. I'd been on my toes waiting for any messages I could get lately, even more than usual.

This one wasn't even _new. _Eddie had sent me this over a month ago; I was just re-reading some old e-mails he had sent me that I just happened to save. Him, Fabian, and KT had gotten out of the crypt, thank goodness. But now Eddie is telling me that KT, this American girl that I had never met that seemed so sweet, turned on Sibuna and is working for Sarah's now evil father, Robert, who also happened to be her great grandfather. I know I'd never met the girl, but I didn't believe it at first, and I still don't. KT was a dedicated girl who had lost most of her family members to fight against this curse, just like I was, and I just can't see her betraying them. She lost her _grandfather _to this quest, so why would she throw it all away for something so conniving and cruel? The answer was simple; she couldn't.

Ever since then, Eddie hasn't been answering any of my messages whatsoever, and I'm starting to get worried. That's why I was going over all of our past conversations; maybe there had been a hidden clue somewhere that I haven't noticed yet. If there's one thing I've learned, it's that you can never be too suspicious.

But André was still right. I was so obsessed with the past that it was starting to affect things in my present. I haven't been sleeping lately, I haven't been making anymore friends again, and I'm pretty sure my grades are slipping, which is so unlike anything I've ever done. I had time to keep perfect scores when I was fighting an evil curse, but when I have all the possible time in the world, _now _is when I'm starting to fall. Way to go, Nina.

André slung his arm casually around my shoulder as we walked down the halls, still talking about how pointless he thought all this stress I was putting myself under was. I swear, if André wasn't so. . .I don't know. . . -_ghetto- _sometimes, he would be like a hippie-slash-guru for teenagers. He's one of the most calm people I've met, always going with the flow. He can find a way to be comfortable in any situation, and it is _not _fair. Here I am being as awkward as Robbie at a place where I used to practically own the stage. André had million friends, out of this world talent and serious confidence, which is awesome and all, but the fact that he was still a level-headed guy made him the best friend in the world.

We headed out the door for the café, I breathed in the warm, fresh air that entered my lungs and the sun that shined on my skin. I almost forgot how much I loved the weather here; I could actually where sandals and summer dresses again. In England, it rarely stopped raining and was almost always cold, or at least too cold for a California Gurl to get used to that fast. It wasn't so bad since before my parents died I lived in Cleveland, Ohio, and then came out here to live with Gran. So the sudden change wasn't that unfamiliar.

I pulled my lunch out of my bag as I started walking towards our normal table, and scrunched my nose at what was inside. "Yuck, I have tuna for lunch _again. _I'm pretty sure Harmony is trying to make me turn into a fish, since that all that she'll ever feed me. Hey, do you have a five I could borrow? We could split some nachos from Festus' truck," I suggested, not looking up from my lunch.

I felt André put his hand at the small of my back, steering me in the opposite direction. Probably just guiding me out of the way of people like he always does when I have my head in the clouds. "Uh, sorry, I'm splittin' the pay with Beck for our pizza today." he replied, his voice a little more far away and distracted than usual.

It took me a few seconds to really comprehend what he just said, and when I finally realized it, I slowly looked up in confusion assuming he made a mistake. "What are you. . ." I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw where he was actually taking me. Just a few feet away was a table taken by Tori, Cat, Beck, and Jade. None of them had noticed us yet, thank God, but still. This was close enough.

I quickly turned around to our normal table in the corner, only to see some other kids had already sat their with their stuff out. I spun back towards André, my face twisted into a look of anger and fear, probably like I was on the verge of tears. Which wasn't too far from the truth.

"No, " I said, looking at them and shaking my head. André grabbed my arm firmly so I couldn't walk away. "No, André. I can't."

"You can." He told me, taking my shoulder. He put his hand up to my face, stroking his thumb across my cheek and wiping away the stray tear that was trailing down. "Hey, hey, don't cry Neens. You can do this. It's just your friends, they'll understand. They're probably over it by now. It'll be no big deal. We'll just walk over there, sit down, and chill. Just like old times."

I took one last glance at their table, seeing Cat and Tori talking about something that caused Beck to laugh. "Are you sure?" I asked him.

He nodded. "I'm sure." And with that, he took my arm and we slowly made our way over there.

"I'm telling you, she is so out to get me! I totally deserved more than a _B _on that project! It was totally perfect!"

"Oh, of course it was! It absolutely, positively magnificent!"

_"I don't talk like that!" _

The whole table burst into laughter and André smiled as he made his way around the table, me tailing along behind him with my head ducked down. "Hey hey everybody!" He greeted.

"Hey!" Everyone answered him, not noticing I was there until I sat down next to him. It went somewhat silent as I saw Jade's and Beck's faces fall.

"Hey Nina," Tori said with a small smile, obviously trying to make the situation less awkward.

"Hey," I replied meekly. "I guess André didn't tell you I was coming..."

I heard a snort. "Nope," Jade scoffed.

"No he did not," Beck added, giving André a look that said _What the heck is she doing here?!_

I averted my eyes to the ground. This was _not _starting out well. "Uh...look you guys, I just wanted to apologize for not keeping in touch for so long...I really didn't mean for it to get that far-"

Jade rolled her eyes. "Please," She muttered.

"Jade," Tori snapped. "Stop it."

"...And I was just wondering if you guys wanted to maybe do something later all together again, like we used to-"

"Oh, so just because Your Highness is back from her palace, you think that we'll just drop everything to play "Big Happy Family" with you again? I know you've had everything else handed to you for the past few years, but there's no way I'm going to grovel at your feet again." Jade scowled at me.

"Jade, I'm just trying to apologize. And you guys are being incredibly rude-"

_"We're _they rude ones? You're the one who ditched us for your little Harry Potter friends after you left for Hogwarts!" She hissed.

"Jade, maybe you shouldn't..." Cat said softly.

"Come on, just give her a break. She's been going through a pretty rough time right now," André agreed.

"You only came crawling back to us because you got kicked out of Wizard Land and had no where else to turn. Guess you weren't as good as you _thought _you were."

"Look, I'm _sorry, _but you can't-"

"Well good for you, Nina, I'm glad you feel better. Because we don't. Not like you ever cared." Jade the grabbed her bag and heaved it over her shoulder. "You left us, so now we're leaving you. Now it's your turn to be left in the dust."

"Where are you going?" Beck asked her.

"Anywhere away from _her." _She turned around once she saw he wasn't behind her. "Well?" She said. "It's her or me Beck."

Beck then glanced back at me, and then at Jade. I knew my eyes were desperate, and I was close to tears, but I refused to let them fall again. It didn't make a difference though, because Beck slowly took hold of his backpack and got up from the table, his eyes never leaving mine. He said nothing, but just backed away until he was next to Jade, putting his arm around her. I felt like I heard my heart immediately crack. I guess jade heard it too, because she then smirked at me, turning away and leading Beck with her.

Everyone looked at me, expecting me to say something, but I couldn't find the words. I just sat there staring at the table, trying my hardest to keep the tears from surfacing. But it didn't matter. They had already come.

"Don't listen to her, Neens, Jade is just a jerk." André told me, putting a hand on my knee.

"Yeah, once she told me there were bunnies in the bathroom, so I went to look, but then she locked the door behind me." Cat suddenly jumped in. Her face fell. "And there were no bunnies."

"Yeah...but I promise tomorrow will be better, We'll just-"

I sniffled and shook my head, quickly wiping the tears away. "No," I said. "There won't be a next time. I knew I shouldn't have come today, and I was right." I then jumped out of my seat and hurried off towards the bathroom, ignoring the calls I was getting back from the table. This time, though, I didn't look back.

* * *

"You have every right to be ticked at me," I turned around to see André standing in the door way, a guilty expression written on his face.

After the lunch incident, I had run to the closest place I could be alone, which at the time happened to be this janitor's closet. I curled up in the corner next to the broom and cried harder than I have in a long time, hating how stupid had been for actually going through with this. I shouldn't have even considered sitting with the group, because I _knew _something like this would happen. And it did. How could I have been so stupid?

But seeing André standing there, feeling so bad for something that had nothing to do with him, made me feel worse than Jade ever could. He's was the one who had been here for me this entire time; he helped get me out of the rut I was in about England. André was one of the best friends I'd ever had, and I wasn't about to let him go over something as stupid as a dumb cat fight in highschool.

I gave him a small smile. "It's not your fault," I told him.

"Uh, yeah, it kinda is." He answered, sitting down next to me in the closet. I laughed at his gesture and laid my head on his shoulder, feeling exhausted from all the crying I'd done.

"It's ok, Jade was just saying what everyone else was thinking."

"I don't think that."

"Well you can't, you're my best friend. You're not legally obligated to be mad at me for anything." I joked, making him chuckle. I let out a sigh. "Beck, on the other hand, has no problem breaking that rule." I muttered.

Andre suddenly sat up and looked at me, his eye brows furrowed in confusion. "Care to elaborate?" He asked.

Here we go.

"I don't...I don't know...I'm just _sick_ of everybody leaving me. I get the fact that everyone in England have no choice to move on, I really do, but I just thought at least Beck would stick around a little longer," I said in a hoarse whisper. I closed my eyes as my throat tightened. I will _not _let André see me cry for the second time today, especially when I'm the one who screwed up. "I get that it's my fault in the first place, but it still hurts that I couldn't count on him."

André sat there silently until he put a gentle had on my knee and stroked it with his thumb/ I looked up at him when he opened his mouth to speak, but paused. "Do you remember that night before you left for your first in England?" He asked me.

I gave him a puzzled look, but nodded. "Yeah. . . what about it?"

"I made you promise me that we'd always stay the same; that we wouldn't let this new school thing change us?" My heart dropped. Where was this going? "Well we didn't talk for almost a year after that."

I knew it. "I know, and I told you guys, I'm so sor-" I tried to say.

"But," André interrupted, "I'm still here." He smiled at me and I smiled back, but I knew there was still more to this story. "What I'm trying to say is, you can't say everyone is always leaving you. Because you left me, not the other way around." I sat there with a dumbfounded expression, and watched as André slowly got up and walked carefully down the hallway.

**Wow. Time has flown by. I meant to update this story every week, but when episodes started coming on every night instead of once a week, I so lost track. And now it's almost the end of the season. I am so sorry. But I'm going to try hard to get a few more chapters up of Nina's life in America before the season ends. Fingers crossed!**

**As always, any ideas or suggestions are encouraged. Reviews and constructive criticism are always welcome too. Thanks for reading!**

**~Suki17**


	4. House of Apology, House of Opportunity

"Uh...hey." I looked up from my textbook and immediately looked back down, like no one had ever talked to me.

I hadn't spoken to André yesterday after his, um..._confession..._that he was still mad about me leaving for England a few years back. I didn't talk to anyone, really, since I didn't exactly have anyone else to talk to. I didn't know whether I should be mad at him for just making my already terrible day tens times worse, or to feel bad and go apologize. Both sides we were weighing on me at the moment, and I was leading more towards the second one...

But that still didn't make me any happier to see him towering over me right now. I let out a sigh. "Don't worry; you've all got what you wanted. I have no friends, my Gran is ill, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to fail this semester. I am totally, utterly miserable now. Mission accomplished." I muttered.

"You know that's not what I meant yesterday." He told me. "I really didn't mean it."

"Yeah? Well it sounded pretty legit to me."

"Come on, Neens, you know your my best friend. I'm_ sorry_,"

"You have a funny way of showing it." André rolled his eyes and snatched my book out of my hand. "Hey! Give it back!" I cried. I reached to take it back, but he held it higher.

"Not until you listen to me," He pushed.

"No! I need to study! I have a huge test tomorrow and I can't afford to bomb this one!" I shouted, still trying to get my book back.

André started to back away, but I hugged his torso so he couldn't get away, still on the floor. As he pulled away, he dragged me across the floor with him, forcing me to stand up. I guess he knew my next move was to jump on his back or something, because he pushed my head back with his one palm like they do in the movies and on TV, and I struggled to get out of his grasp. But before I could move his stupid hand, he took my book and stuffed it up his shirt.

My mouth dropped. "_What _are you doing?" I hissed.

"Puttin' your book next to my bellay," André joked, grinning as he patted the book.

"I can _see_ that. I meant _why _are you doing it." I scoffed.

"You need to be more specific," André stated, obviously ignoring my question. I am _not _in the mood for his stupid teasing right now, especially for his amusement. "And you're not getting back until you hear me out."

"Just give me the book back, André." I spat, reaching for it once more.

He held up his hand. "Yeah, and what's gonna happen when everyone see you with your hand up my shirt? Not too good for yo' image, now is it?" I growled and crossed my arms, backing off. "Now are you ready listen?" I nodded, and looked away with an annoyed scowl on my face. "Good. Now there's one thing I wanna be clear; Nina, you gotta understand that what happened between all of us a few years back ain't who ya are, it doesn't define you. We've all screwed up with our friends somewhere down the road, but that doesn't mean we give up on each other that easy. So what if you made new friends at school? Who wouldn't? I know I would, and to be honest I probably would've forgotten about everything for awhile if I went to England," I looked up at André, not believing what I was hearing. "I get that people like Jade can be a gank, but you can't let her ruin your whatever time we have with you now."

He put a hand on my knee, like he had been doing a lot lately. "You came back for a reason, Neens. I might not know what that reason is, but I do know that it's givin' us second shot with you. And to do our friendship right this time."

I smiled softly, but let out a sigh. "I know this is a chance for a do-over for our friendships, but maybe it's not Jade, or Beck, or anyone else. Maybe it's just me. I don't belong here, André. I don't even know how I got into this school, it doesn't make any sense. We just have to accept that I'm an average girl. A normal, _boring _average girl."

"You sound like someone else I know," André smirked, giving me a knowing look.

"That was different; Tori actually had talent. She could sing and act and do everything else. I am by no means musical, and aren't you required to play an instrument here?"

"Well you've been...an _exception _under certain circumstances...but that's not the point. The point is Tori has to learn where to sing like she does, Nina, and where do you think she learned it? Where do you think Beck learned to act, Sinjin learned about tech-y stuff, and where Robbie learned to...do...his puppet thing...ok, well maybe _he _didn't learn that here, but you get what I'm sayin'." He told me. "I started playing guitar back in the 8th grade because this was my dream school and I would do anything to get in, and I did. But it didn't just take 3 minutes and 26 seconds like it did for Tori to get accepted; I hard to work hard and be dedicated, and I don't regret a thing."

He sighed once he saw I wasn't really following. "Look, what I'm trying to say is you're not just gonna rock at something on your first try, you gotta own it."

"Well what can I "own"?" I asked.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. But I promise you that we'll find out what it is together."

That was undeniably cheesy, but still the sweetest thing ever. I smiled at him as he offered me a goofy grin. "Thanks André." I leaned and gave him a quick hug, but when he wasn't paying attention I saw that my book was slipping and I snatched it from out of his shirt. I darted down the hallway, clutching it close to me! "Ha!" I shouted in victory, looking back at him. He shook his head and gave me the peace sign, making me laugh even harder.

* * *

"Ok, let's see...203...204...205...aha! Room 206!" I said to myself as I wandered aimlessly down the halls, trying to find my Computer Design Class. I used to know these halls like the back of my hand, but there were all these new classes that juniors and seniors had to take compared to freshmen and sophomores and I couldn't find them as fast as everyone else.

The bell had rung way long before I found the room, I didn't even know how long I had been looking, but I'm sure it was at least 3/4 of the period. I'm seriously hoping the teacher will give me grace since it's a new semester. Whoever this "Mr. Redding" is, I really hope he's not as scary as his teacher profile describes him to be.

I slowly opened the door to see a few kids look up from their computers and Mr. Redding glance up from his glasses, taking his clip board in hand. He was a tall and slim man, dressed in a nice suit with his hair neatly gelled back. His piercing blue eyes shone right through thin, rectangular glasses. "Got lost, huh?" I nodded. He then chuckled and smiled at me. "You're Miss Martin, I presume?" I nodded again. "I'll unmark you absent, take a seat wherever you like."

I then looked around to immediately see an empty chair a few seats away, but noticed it was next to Cat, Jade and Tori. Tori spotted me, and waved for me to come over, but I glanced at Jade and shook my head no. She frowned and urged me further. I could just hear her telling me that Jade doesn't matter and she went through the same thing when she first started school here, but her experience was still different than mine. I didn't want to start anymore unwanted trouble, and decided to take the seat across the room, away from both of them.

I sighed and finally looked at my computer; realizing I had no idea what we were supposed to be doing right now. Not like it was worth it anyway, I had missed almost all of class just for this room. Who the heck decided to put a computer lab in the basement of mazes? Since I had nothing better to do, I decided to go online. I pressed the internet button and waited for it to load, thinking of what website to go on. There was TheSlap, Twitter, Fanfiction...but there was one I hadn't been on forever that stood out against all of the other URLs rushing through my head. I quickly started typing it up on Google, knowing it wouldn't be programmed in this computer since only people from my old school uses it, and eagerly clicked on the web address.

E-mail and password; NinaVMartin , S-a-r-a-h-F-S. Yeah, I know, it sounds kinda creepy to have Sarah as my password, but I learned that "Anubis" was too obvious, considering Amber figured it out to change my relationship status...

My ChumChatter notification button made me jump, seeing as how I had 76 of them, and most of them were from Sibuna of course. The latest one was just a little shy of four months old, I clicked on my page to see that so many people had posted on it back then;

**Patricia Williamson: Sent you another letter today. Sure hope for a reply this time...**

_**Posted on October 10th, 2012**_

**Amber Millington: I just had to share the news that I got accepted into Fashion School Neens! I'm off to the Big Apple tomorrow! 3 I miss you so much, wish me luck! :)**

_**Posted on November 1st, 2012**_

**Mara Jaffray: We saw and ad for prom dressed today and immediately thought of you. I hope you're having a great time in America, Nina! Hope to hear from you soon! (:**

_**Posted on November 13th, 2012**_

**Fabian Rutter: I know you probably won't answer this, but...I miss you...**

_**Posted on December 24th, 2012**_

All the other messages were just saying Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, but those ones were the most important to me. I clicked Fabian's page and waited half heartedly as it loaded. His relationship status came up as "it's complicated" and it made me smile. At least he hasn't changed it to single yet. I scrolled down and noticed that he hadn't been on much lately, mainly just commenting on pictures and reposting other people's blog posts, but awhile longer down I saw that his status had been changed;

_**Life has changed and it's weird, but I'm feeling oddly optimistic and it's all thanks to you guys :) **_

He had tagged the other members of Sibuna in it, and I smiled at all the supporting comments he had gotten. I especially liked the one that Eddie had made, stating that it was time to get dancing because it was a new year with new beginnings. I laughed to myself as I heard the bell ring and everyone pooled out of the room, leaving me to be the last one. I quickly hit the 'log out' bottom and closed and window. I sighed and got up, pushing my chair in and heading for the door.

Just as my hand reached the door knob, ready to open it, I heard Mr. Redding say; "Nina, could I have a word please?"

I looked up at him, slightly confused. "Sure," I answered.

"It might just be me, but I seemed to notice that you were a little...stand offish when it came to Miss West today..."

I internally sighed. Great. Even my teacher knows I'm a loser getting picked on my old best friend. "Oh...about that..."

"Now I know it's personal, and I'm not going to make you into it, but I just want you to know that if you ever need some help with anything, I'm always here."

"Thanks Mr. Redding...that means a lot." I looked at him skeptically as I started for the door again, only to have him stop me once more.

"You know I saw in a movie once that if you make at least one friend on your first day, you're doing good." Mr. Redding said with a slight smile.

"And then I'm supposed to say that if my only friend is my English teacher, then that'd kinda suck." I answered, giving him a knowing look. "You liked "Perks of Being a Wallflower"?"

He shrugged. "I went to see it with my son and it seemed like a good line to remember for the future."

"And I'm guessing your son is the one who told you about my recent conflicts with Jade too."

"...Possibly..."

I chuckled. "Yeah, well only problem is that today's definitely not my first day, and I'm kind of not Logan Lerman."

"And I'm definitely not your English teacher because I'm pretty sure I can't eve spell wallflower correctly, but you don't see me complaining." Mr. Redding joked back.

I laughed again. "That's good to know, glad to see I have an actually sane teacher in this school." I told him.

He gave me a smile and nodded. "So am I." He picked up a small piece of paper from his desk and held it out for me. "Here. This is going to be our project for this quarter. You can choose any subject you like, as long as it's on the list or I say otherwise. We'll pick the three top pieces at the end of April to submit to an international competition, but the only catch is I'm not allowed to help you."

"So it's kind of like an independent study?"

He nodded. "It's around the lines of that. We missed our overview about what else we'll be doing this semester; things like the buddy system for certain brain storming activities and we'll stiff have homework to keep your inspiration levels up."

"That's just a nice way of saying you have to make sure we don't slack off during the project," I smirked, feeling oddly bold and comfortable with this guy.

"As a teacher, I'm not actually supposed to even acknowledge that comment, let alone participate in asking about students' personal lives, but yes. That's exactly what my homework is for." We both laughed and I thanked him, saying I'll see him in class tomorrow, and then left for my next period.

* * *

"Animation scene, story board sequence, music video, short film, song using _digital music software only?" _Andre scrunched his nose as he read through the pamphlet of possible projects I could do for Mr. Redding's class. There were tons and tons, but I was only allowed to do one so I hade a fait chance of getting submitted. "Ok, this is an insult to musicians everywhere." He established, before tossing the booklet over to me.

"Basically anything goes as long as it involves using a computer." I told him "I think I'm gonna go with the short film."

André nodded. "Sounds cool. You can write, direct, do your thing. I like it."

I smiled at his comment, but sighed. How did André have so much confidence in me? It was a question that never seemed to be answered and with every passing day, I wanted to know that answer more. "Now all I need is a totally amazing idea and people to act out, that totally, amazing idea."

"Well I know the perfect people that would love to be in a film that isn't written yet," André stated.

I perked up and rolled over from my current position on my couch. "Tell me!"

He shook his head. "You're not gonna like it."

My smile immediately faded. "No," I said.

"Come on, Nina, what other choice do ya' have?" Ander asked me.

"If I can't get within a 10 feet radius of them without Jade or Beck ripping my head off, how do you think I'm going to get them to be in my movie for Computer class?" I asked him.

"All we gotta do is remind them that you're still the same old girl you used to be; you know, kinda re-do all the good times we've had."

"Kind of like reenact all of our old times?"

He nodded. "Yeah, sort of. If we make them remember all the good memories we've had, then maybe that'll be our first step to fixin' everyone's friendships." I smiled, finally starting to understand his plan. "Tell you what, we'll do whatever it takes to fix you guys back up, but just follow my lead. Ok?"

"Ok," I agreed. "Let's do it."

Maybe this could work...

* * *

**3 more episodes left guys! We're getting closer!**

** Thank god I had a snow day today. There's not snow outside what so ever, but I'll still take it. I figured that Nina should catch a break with her Hollywood friends, that one still being André. I'm aiming for at least two more chapters to be done with Nina in America before it really starts to focus on House of Anubis residents. Thanks for reading, as always! **

**~Suki17**


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